Pneumatic valve control volume booster system



May 19, 1953 H. L. BowDlTcH ETAL 2,638,875

PNEUMATIO VALVE CONTROL VOLUME BOOSTER sVsTEM Filed Feb. 12', 1952 ATTO EYS Patented May 19, 1953 UNITED STATES PNEUMATIC VALVE CONTROL VOLUME BOOSTER SYSTEM Hoel L. Bowditch and Allan R. Catheron, Foxboro, Mass., assignors to Foxboro Company, Foxboro,

Mass.

Application February 12:, 1952, Serial No. 271,268

3 Claims.

This invention relates to pneumatic valve control systems and has particular reference to systems such as that shown in the Cook Patent 2,240,244 for precise positioning of valve stems, in which a feed-back action representative of the actual position of the valve stem is used as a factor in the operation of the control system.

Such systems are commonly available in small pneumatic capacity sizes for use with valves of ordinary size. This invention provides means for simply and inexpensively applying such available l systems to much larger valves, demanding much greater pneumatic volume for rapid operation, than those valves for which the system was designed. The customary method of providing such large volumes quickly is to apply a standard pneumatic booster in the usual manner. 'Ihis is unsatisfactory in this case because the feed-back action of the precise positioner system causes undesirable hunting or cycling in the n large valve when a large volume signal from the booster in suddenly applied thereto. n

This invention solves this problem by using such a system with a conventional pneumatic volume booster and a pneumatic by-pass around the booster. This by-pass is designed to present I a predetermined restriction to pneumatic flow. The effect of this arrangement is that the booster action moves the valve stem rapidly through most of the desired stroke, and the by-passaction moves the valve stem less rapidly through the remainder of the `desired stroke.

I Variations in flow processes or 4pressure controlled processes are almost instantaneous and in many such processes even small variations involve large quantities of fluid. It is 4necessary l in many processes to use large valves, and it is desirable to operate these valves rapidly, in keeping with the rapid variations in the process. Rather than attempt to design, build, and keepin stock many special systems for rapid, precise control of large valves, it is preferable to adapt thereto presently available small pneumatic capacity systems for precise control.

It is an object of this invention to` provide a new and novel pneumatic valve control system.

It is a further object to provide a control sysl tem for the precise positioning of valve stems in which a small pneumatic capacity system is adapted to a large valve with large volume demand, to provide rapid and precise response matic valve control system as an embodiment of this invention; and

Figure II -is a graph in illustration of pressuretime relations in the control system of Figure I.

Referring to Figure I, a partial lshowing of va valve Il) is presented. 'Ihis is the valve which is operatedby the control system of this invention, and an illustrative embodiment of this system is shown in connection with the valve I0. The system comprises generally a control signal receiving unit I I, a nozzle-baffle assembly l2, primarily operable by the receiving unit II, a pneumatic relay I 3 as a pneumatic pressure amplifier for the nozzle-baille assembly, and a pneumatic volume booster unit I4 for the output of the relay I3. The stem position of the valve I0 is related back to the nozzle-baffle assembly I2 through a lever I5 as a feed-back factor in the control system and as a secondary operation of the nozzle-baille assembly I2.

` The receiving unit II has an input pipe It for leading a. pneumatic control signal to the unit. The input pipe I6 is connected to a bellows I I having a fixed end I8 to which the pipe I6 is connected, and a movable end I9.

When a pneumatic signal is applied to the unit Il through the pipe I 6, the bellows I1 expands or contracts, ldepending upon thev direction of the signal, and the bellows end I9 is` moved accordingly. Engaging the movable end of the bellows and axially aligned with the bellows, a coil spring 20 is provided as a loading spring for the bellows I'I, to oppose expansion and aid contraction thereof.

Secured tothe movable end I9 of the bellows is a movement transmitting arm 2I, which depends from the bellows and which moves laterally with the movable end of the bellows. On the lower end of the arm 2|, a laterally extending and vertically disposed 'ear 22 is lo.- cated in fixed relation to the arm 2|.y In this ear 22 a pivot 23 is located, on a horizontal axis which is perpendicular to the axis of the bellows I'I. 0n the pivot 23 a depending lever 24 is mounted for pivotal movement thereabout in a vertical plane. Part way down the lever 24a laterally extending bias spring 25is secured to the lever to provide a tendency to clockwise movement in the lever 24. Also part way down the lever 24, a rigid pin 26 has one end xed on the lever, and extends generally horizontally to the right thereof as a contact member for the Vnozzle-baille assembly I2. The lower end of the lever 24 is unattached, but it bears upon, on its left side, "an end 21 of the lever I5 previously mentioned herein as a valve stem position relating connection between the valve I0 and the nozzle-baille assembly I2. The lever I5, with respect to the possible pivotal movement of the lever 24, opposes the clockwise biasing action of the coil spring 25.

As the arm 2I is moved laterally by the movement of the bellows I'I, the lever 24 is also moved laterally, with pivoting action about the pivot v23 as a laterally moving pivot, and also with avsliding, pivoting action at the lower end of the lever 24, on the end 2'! of the lever l5.

Between the signal receiving unit Il and the nozzle-baille assembly I2, the vfinal step in providing transmission of movement from the bellows I1 is in the engagement of the'pin. 25. witha pivoted baille Il in the assembly i2.

The baffle 23 extends upwardly from a pivot 29, and is biased by a spring 30 abouttha-t pivot in a counterclockwise directionl into engagementI with the end of the pin 26. Movement. of the baffle 28 about its pivot 29 is therefore accomplishedA when a control signal is applied tothe bellows Il. In association with-the. baille 2%.a pneumatic bleed nozzle 3l is. provided Iin such a manner that movementof the .baffle about. its pivot varies the restriction of pneumatic flow from the nozzle. The nozzle 3l is. onthe same side o-fthe baille 28 as is the pin-26 .and the spring bias .of the baffle 2S is -thereiorea bias .toward the nozzleS lY aswell as .toward the pinZB. The nozzle .3| is connected to the pneumatic pressure .amplier I3'. by means of. a pipe 3.2 throughwhich Athe nozzlel is provided with a .small pneumatic flow.

The pneumatic pressure .amplifier I3 is .a relay for. supplying, pneumatic. powerin response to. a small tripping.. pressuresuppliedl by back pressure throughthe pipe 32 `astheflow throughthe nozzle 3l is restricted by the baille 2B; Ar-pneiunati'c flow ispassed through the relay 1.3. in restriction .fro-ma pneumatic. power supply pipe 33.110 supply thesmallflcw through! thenozzl'e. 3;!1. The nozzle back. pressure is applied.. in .the relay, to. a diaphragm 34. The relay is. supplied with pneumatic pressure from the. supply pipev 33,. and the diaphragm dl-operatesa. supply andwaste valve mechanism. 3.5 to. provide, an .output pressure from the relay. 3.01; to exhaust from .a `relay outlet 36 to.:atmosphere.. From-.the .output of. the pressure amplifier relay ,a pipe 3.?. leads to the` booster unit I4,.with a pipe 38 branchingoilf` before the booster isreached. Thispipe. t3 is the. booster unit bypass mentioned. hereinbefore.

The booster unit I4 is avolume ampliher with a. 1:1 pressure relation. The booster contains a flexible. diaphragm 39. on which the pressure from the relay I3; acts. The diaphragm. 391. carries a valve seat. 40 and a passage 4I' to4 atmosphere. One ,side-of theboostler isv connected to a supply pipe 42' and the other side is connected to an output pipe 43 which leads to the controlledvalve |01. In the booster, astationary valve. seat 44' is atene end ofapassage 45 connecting the supply and. output' of the booster. Extending, through this` passage is a double-ended valve 4U' pushed toward the diaphragm tcby a spring 4T.. This valve. controls the ilow of air from the supply pipe 4,2.to the output pipe 43. and controls the ow of air from. the output pipe 43 to atmosphere, through `the passage 41'.

When the pressure yfrom the relay I3.inoves the booster. diaphragm 33., the. valve seatv 40' is. held against one end of the double-ended valve 46 and the other end of the valve is held clear ofk the stationary valveseat 4d. This opensthe passage d'to allow the airto flow from thev booster air supply to its output. As the pressure drop across the boosteris reduced, the-air through'the booster is throttled and the valveseat 40 is moved away from the valve- 46 to connect the booster output pipe 43*I to vthe passage 41' to atmosphere.

The by-pass pipe 38 connects the relay output pipe 3.1` with the booster output pipe 43' and is provided with a valve 48, manually adjustable to establish a desired degree of restriction in the by-pass pipe 38.

'Ihe booster output pipe 43 is connected to the valve It. sol as to: deliver the booster output to aa pneumatic motor therein (not shown). This motor is usually7 of the diaphragm type, with avalvestem 4B .attached thereto. For convenience, in this valve the arrangement is that an increase in pressure will move the valve stern 49' downward; In opposition to the downward movement of the stern is a large coil spring 50 which is concentrically mounted around the stem 4.9 and is arranged in the usual manner to move the stem upward when the pressure in the pneumatic. motor is reduced'. Mounted on the stem 49. is a. fixed. collar 5I: and' a movable collar 52, urged toward the nxed collar 5I by a spring 53. Between these collars a rounded' end 54 of the lever I5 is thus resiliently held. Under normal operating; force conditions, the lever end 54 is held at one point, vertically, on the valve stem 59. The lever end 5ft thus moves vertically with the stem with a small horizontal component as the lever I5 is moved about a pivot 55. In this manner the lever. I5 carries a valve stem position indication to the lever; 24; as a factor inthe control ofthe valve.

Inthe operation. of this control system and with reference to Figure Il, and the time-pressure relations of the control system', the 'pressure values shown are all taken at the valve I0, that is the pressure in the pneumatic motor ofl the valve I0". These pressures are designated PV (pressure atA the valve). PV1 represents the pressure in vthe valve motor at the time a control signal is applied to the bellows Il. Also, zero time is the time at which the control signal is applied to the bellows. T1 represents the time between the application of a control signal to the bellows I1 andthen'rst applicationA of responsive pressure to the valve motor. T z represents the time the `booster is` in operation andi the valve stem is being'moved rapidly. v PVs represents the point at which theA booster pressure drop is so small that the booster is closed. T3 is the time necessaryY to move the valve stem', less rapidly., to its final position, with the by-pass 38 as the only conduit of added pressure tothe valve W; PVs. isV the final output pressure with the valve stem 49.' in its precisely correctV position andthe system balanced and at rest.

It should be noted here that the booster may be considered to operate either as a fully throttlingvalve or'as an on-oi valve, with or without partial throttli'ng. These differences lie in the pressure-volume relations which may be built into the booster and, this invention is not concerned with the details of such arrangements. They simply vary the slope or contour of lthetimepressure curve as in Figure IIy particularly inthe area covered by T2. With the booster arranged as. a fully throttling device it would be expected that a straight line relation would be obtained, as is shown in the drawing. The main concern of this invention is to provide a booster arrangement which will change PVi to PVz rapidl'yand PV'z to PVs at a slower rate.

When a positive (increased pressure) signal is received in the bellows HJ, the bellows is eX- panded,.and the arm 2l is moved to the left along with the movable end Ilof the bellows; 'Ihe pivoted lever 24 is moved to the left, turning on its pivots at 23' and 2l' with thel result that the pin 2B: is moved awayl from the baille 23'; Until the valve stem 49 is moved, the pivot at 27 remains unmoved. The baiile spring 3U causes the baffle to follow the pin 26 but this action restricts the pneumatic flow from the nozzle 3i. Back pressure from the nozzle 3l operates the pressure ampliier relay i3 and an output signal therefrom is impressed in the pipe 3l. Since the volumes of the pipes 3l and 38 and of the signal receiving chamber in the booster unit are small, for practical purposes the full output pressure of the relay It reaches the booster and the restrictor 4B simultaneously.

The booster now acts quickly to supply greater volume of air at the same pressure, and impresses this volume in the pipe i3 leading to the valve. But there is a small delay because of the time necessary to operate the booster and to ll the pipe 43 and the pneumatic motor of the valve Hi with air at full pressure. This means that there is a pressure drop between pipe 31 and pipe 43, that is, between the ends of the by-pass pipe 38. This may be called the booster pressure drop. At this point, pressure is applied to the valve lll and movement of the valve stem 49 is started. Because of the large volume output of the booster unit, the valve stem under these conditions is moved rapidly through most of the stroke called for by the control signal. As the valve stem is thus being rapidly moved, the pressure drop across the booster is being rapidly reduced.

When the booster pressure drop is reduced to the value which is the pressure threshold of operation for the booster, the booster no longer operates. From this point, the further movement of the valve stem becomes slower, since the relay I3 is then in control as actuated in part by the feed-back action of the arm l5 and as operating through the small capacity by-pass 38. This slower movement continues until the valve stem actually reaches the position precisely representative of the value of the signal which has been applied to the bellows Il. This is the precise positioner action in which the relation of the baille 28 to the nozzle 3l is a function of the combined movements of the bellows Il and the valve stem 49.

The by-pass restrictor 48 may be adjusted for greater or less restriction as a means of changing the slope of the T3 or by-pass portion of the curve in Figure II. If the restrictor 48 is opened too far, the booster pressure may not reach the threshold of pressure needed for its operation, although the capacity of the by-pass pipe would have to be substantial for this condition. If the restriction passage in the restrictor 48 is too small, the action will be the same as if there were no lay-pass, and the undesirable hunting or cycling of the valve stem will occur.

The booster and by-pass action is the same, except in reverse, when the signal applied to the bellows Il constitutes a reduction in pressure.

This invention, therefore, provides a pneumatic valve control system with feed-back action from the valve stem, in which a volume booster is used without ill eiect because a small capacity booster by-pass is provided.

We claim:

1. In a pneumatic control system for positioning a valve stem in accordance with a pneumatic control signal, a pneumatic motor for receiving a pneumatic representation of said signal and for actuating said stem in response thereto, and an arrangement for receiving said signal, producing said representation, and applying said representation to said motor; said arrangement including a member movable with said valve stem in representation of the actual movement of said stem, a pneumatic nozzle-baule assembly operable jointly by said signal and said member, a pneumatic volume booster unit operable through the action of said nozzle-baie assembly, a rst pneumatic transmission pipe operatively connecting said assembly with said booster unit, a second pneumatic transmission pipe operatively connecting said booster unit with said pneumatic motor, and a small capacity pipe of predetermined restriction to pneumatic flow connecting said first and second transmission pipes as a by-pass with respect to said booster unit.

2. In a pneumatic control system for positioning a valve stem in accordance with a pneumatic control signal, a pneumatic motor for receiving a pneumatic representation of said signal and for actuating said stem in response thereto, and an arrangement for receiving said signal, producing said representation, and applying said representation to said motor; said arrangement including a bellows for initially receiving said signal, a member movable with said valve stem in representation of the actual movement of said stem, a pneumatic nozzle-bale assembly operable jointly by said bellows and said member, a pneumatic relay operable through the action of said nozzle-barde assembly, a pneumatic volume booster unit for receiving the output of said relay, a iirst pneumatic transmission pipe operatively connecting said relay with said booster unit, a second pneumatic transmission pipe operatively connecting said booster unit with said pneumatic motor, and a small capacity pipe of predetermined restriction to pneumatic flow connecting said first and second transmission pipes as a by-pass with respect to said booster unit.

3. In a pneumatic control system for positioning a valve stem in accordance with a pneumatic control signal, a pneumatic motor for receiving a pneumatic representation of said signal and for actuating said stem in response thereto, and an arrangement for receiving said signal, producing said representation, and applying said representation to said motor; said arrangement including a bellows for initially receiving said signal, a member movable with said valve stem in representation of the actual movement of said stem, a pneumatic nozzle-baffle assembly operable jointly by said bellows and said member, a pneumatic relay operable through the action of said nozzle-barde assembly, a pneumatic volume booster unit for receiving the output of said relay, a first pneumatic transmission pipe operably connecting said relay with said booster unit, a second pneumatic transmission pipe operatively connecting said booster unit with said pneumatic motor, a small capacity pipe connecting said iirst and second transmission pipes as a by-pass with respect to said booster unit, and an adjustable restriction in said by-pass.

HOEL L. BOWDITCH. ALLAN R. CATHERON.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,240,244 Cook Apr. 29, 1941 2,388,457 Ziegler Nov. 6, 1945y 

